“The NAHB housing market index stayed at 16 in December for the second month in a row. The prospective buyers index caught our eye — ticked down to 11 from 12 in November. It is quite amazing that despite all the government efforts, the real estate market continues to struggle to find anything more than any elusive bottom. In fact, the index continues to languish at levels that were below the troughs of the 1990-91 and 2001 recessions. To add insult to injury, mortgage applications fell another 2.3% in the December 10th week and are down now in each of the past three weeks and both the purchase and refinancing segments declined. “
David Rosenberg/Gluskin Sheff 12/16/10
